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Civil Engineering & Surveying Construction & Design Technologies STEM Students

Veteran chosen as college’s October ‘Student of the Month’

Regina M. Peluzzo

Regina M. Peluzzo, characterized by a faculty member as “the model student for civil engineering technology,” has been chosen as October’s “Student of the Month” at Pennsylvania College of Technology.

“Civil engineers primarily serve people, specifically by providing infrastructure that leads to stronger communities and better quality of life,” an instructor said of Peluzzo’s academically challenging major. “Gina is preparing for her career as a civil engineer by being a dedicated student and through her service to others.”

An Air Force veteran of five years (and counting), the honoree has twice put her education on hold for overseas deployments.

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Events Faculty & Staff Gallery Makerspace Students

Gallery artist-in-residence bridges tradition, technology during workshop

Repko interacts with students during a “Bridging the Gaps” workshop, where participants built bridges representing the past, present and future as they relate to the artist’s work.

“Jeff Repko was the ideal choice for our first artist-in-residence in the ‘Material Matters’ series as his work combines traditional materials with digital fabrication methods,” said Penny Griffin Lutz, director of The Gallery at Penn College. In addition to a public reception for his exhibit, “In Proximity,” Repko’s five-day residency (Nov. 5-9) featured workshops in the gallery and The Dr. Welch Workshop: A Makerspace at Penn College. “His artistic vision was a perfect fit for Penn College’s community of makers,” Lutz added. “He took advantage of the equipment in the makerspace to begin a new sculpture, and he enjoyed the one-on-one time he spent with students, educators and the public during hands-on workshops. Jeff felt so welcomed by our campus community!” “In Proximity” is on display through Dec. 11 in The Gallery at Penn College, on the third floor of Madigan Library. Hours are 2 to 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays, and 1 to 4 p.m. Sundays. The gallery is closed Mondays and Saturdays and will be closed Nov. 27-Dec. 1. The “Material Matters: Past, Present, Future” series will include two additional short-term artist residencies over the next two years and is supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

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General Information Students

Penn College earns ‘Guard Friendly’ designation

Guard Friendly School

Pennsylvania College of Technology’s commitment to its students in the National Guard has been saluted by a statewide organization dedicated to those who serve.

The Pennsylvania National Guard Associations has named Penn College a PNGAS Guard Friendly School. The college is among only 30 schools to receive the designation out of 488 institutions eligible for Pennsylvania Educational Assistance Program funds.

“This is a great honor. We take considerable pride in the proactive way we assist students currently serving our nation and those who have served,” said Chester M. Beaver, Penn College’s coordinator of veteran and military services. “It’s rewarding to have our efforts recognized by this designation.”

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Faculty & Staff General Information Students

Community Challenge breaks records

Reed (at left in white sweatshirt) shouts final instructions at the start of the trail run, including the invite to the Habalars’ home for post-race nourishment.
Reed (at left in white sweatshirt) shouts final instructions at the start of the trail run, including the invite to the Habalars’ home for post-race nourishment.

Saturday’s Community Challenge attracted over 400 participants from seven states and raised close to $20,000 – breaking both participant and financial records for the annual event supporting the Salvation Army of Williamsport.

“The Community Challenge attracts so many good-hearted people, from running champions to first-time hikers who are looking for a supported challenge through beautiful and rugged terrain,” said Michael J. Reed, an event organizer and Pennsylvania College of Technology’s vice president for academic affairs/provost. “Over 17 miles of trails are used for the event, and we change the courses every year so participants experience a new challenge and get exposed to more of the beautiful landscape. Our volunteers put in so much time and effort to ensure everything goes as planned. This year was a lot of fun with many smiles, strong feelings of accomplishment, and only a few bumps and bruises. The cause, coupled with the unique race experience, truly made Saturday a special event.”

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Alumni Baking, Pastry & Culinary Arts Business & Hospitality

Culinary grad enlightens beverage management class

“It took me 10 years to find a restaurant like Le Jeune Chef,” Faherty, ’08, said while explaining the career path that led her to fine-dining restaurant 2941. “I fell in love with Le Jeune Chef while I was here.”
“It took me 10 years to find a restaurant like Le Jeune Chef,” Faherty, ’08, said while explaining the career path that led her to fine-dining restaurant 2941. “I fell in love with Le Jeune Chef while I was here.”
Faherty provides ideas to Hospitality Beverage Management Service and Controls students about their own beverage menu ideas.
Faherty provides ideas to Hospitality Beverage Management Service and Controls students about their own beverage menu ideas.

Christine L. Faherty, who received Penn College degrees in culinary arts technology (2005), dietary manager technology (2005) and culinary arts and systems (2008) returned to campus on Nov. 6 to talk with students in Chef Mary Trometter’s Hospitality Beverage Management Service and Controls class about her work as a professional craft bartender and about the role of a beverage program in a restaurant’s operations and revenue.

Faherty is the assistant to the beverage manager at 2941, a fine-dining restaurant in Falls Church, Virginia.

“I use all of the tools that I learned in school,” she said. “We all build menus; I do that, but for a liquid menu.”

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Alumni Faculty & Staff Students

Employee’s ‘value of service’ reflected in YWCA recognition

Katie L. Mackey

Katie L. Mackey, academic skills specialist at Pennsylvania College of Technology, is one of 15 new inductees into the YWCA Northcentral Pennsylvania’s Women of Excellence program.

“While Katie’s commitment to improving the lives of others is evident through her work at Penn College since 2005, Katie’s value of service to others has been a theme throughout her entire life. Katie is selfless in all of her interactions,” her college nominator wrote. “She role-models the values of Woman of Excellence in her professional and personal roles. Katie’s resume illustrates the broad impact she has through our community, from working to create a more inclusive and supportive educational environment for students at Penn College, to the United Way, Family Promise, their children’s activities, and more.

“We are so grateful that she chooses to spend the majority of her day at Penn College, where she is respected and highly valued.”

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Nursing & Health Sciences Occupational Therapy Assistant Students

OTA students put lessons to use in cheerful community outreach

Occupational Therapy Assistant Club members (from left) Cayla M. Rogers, of Selinsgrove; Felicia Baker, of Mifflinburg; Elizabeth Wellar, of Bellefonte; Kaylin J. Walker, of Liberty; and Kayla N. Kern, of Williamsport, dress up to brighten patients’ day at Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital.
Occupational Therapy Assistant Club members (from left) Cayla M. Rogers, of Selinsgrove; Felicia Baker, of Mifflinburg; Elizabeth Wellar, of Bellefonte; Kaylin J. Walker, of Liberty; and Kayla N. Kern, of Williamsport, dress up to brighten patients’ day at Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital.
Carissa N. Rutledge, of Williamsport; Felicia Baker, of Mifflinburg; Eve M. Verona, of Pocono Lake; Kayla N. Kern, of Williamsport; and Maria M. Polonia, of Wellsboro, stand ready to help residents at Valley View Nursing and Rehab Center to participant in the center’s Resident Fair.
Carissa N. Rutledge, of Williamsport; Felicia Baker, of Mifflinburg; Eve M. Verona, of Pocono Lake; Kayla N. Kern, of Williamsport; and Maria M. Polonia, of Wellsboro, stand ready to help residents at Valley View Nursing and Rehab Center to participant in the center’s Resident Fair.

Students in the Occupational Therapy Assistant Club recently dressed as Disney princesses to visit pediatric patients at the Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital in Danville. After their visit, the students provided a meal for the families of those ill children at the nearby Ronald McDonald House. Club members also volunteered their time to support the Valley View Nursing and Rehab Center’s Resident Fair. “The students helped residents to participate in games and activities, even using their emerging occupational therapy skills to adapt the environment or task so all residents and family members could participate,” explained Jeanne M. Kerschner, director of occupational therapy assistant.
Photos provided

Industrial, Computing & Engineering Technologies Information Technology Students

Penn College IT student presents at conference

Pennsylvania College of Technology student Carson D. Seese, of Shippensburg, co-presented “Hands-On Writing Malware in Go” at BSidesDC, an annual open security conference in Washington, D.C. Seese is seeking a bachelor’s degree in information assurance and cyber security.

A Pennsylvania College of Technology student offered his expertise at a recent conference for information security practitioners in Washington, D.C.

Carson D. Seese, of Shippensburg, co-presented “Hands-On Writing Malware in Go” at BSidesDC, an annual regional open security conference that facilitates interaction and collaboration among IT professionals.

Seese, a sophomore Dean’s List student, is seeking a bachelor’s degree in information assurance and cyber security. He co-presented with Stuart McMurray of IronNet Cybersecurity, a worldwide leader in network traffic analysis. Seese worked with McMurray during his summer internship.

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Art and Graphic Design Faculty & Staff Sciences, Humanities & Visual Communications Students

Students’ wood sculptures on display in downtown Williamsport

Wooden mask sculptures crafted by Pennsylvania College of Technology students are on display at the new office and gallery space of Lycoming Arts in downtown Williamsport.

The artistry of 12 Pennsylvania College of Technology students and a professor is gracing the new office and gallery space of Lycoming Arts, 46 W. Fourth St.

As part of a Wood Sculpture art elective, the class crafted masks, inspired by a study of African masks. Each mask was hand-carved with chisels, mallets and rasps, and the students were encouraged to experiment with shape, color, texture, mixed media additions and other design elements.

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Building Construction Construction & Design Technologies Faculty & Staff Students

Manufacturer opens plant to college’s concrete program

Lehigh Hanson's massive horizontal rotary kilns were among the highlights of a plant visit by concrete science students and faculty.
Lehigh Hanson’s massive horizontal rotary kilns were among the highlights of a plant visit by concrete science students and faculty.

Penn College students and faculty were recently invited by Doug Cassatt, of the Lehigh Hanson Heidleberg Cement Group, to tour the company’s Fleetwood Cement Manufacturing facility. “The students were introduced to the sophisticated process of cement production by an extremely knowledgeable Lehigh Hanson staff, from the raw material in the quarry to the final packing facility where the product is loaded and transported by truck or rail,” said Joseph F. DiBucci, a concrete science technology major and president of the ConCreate Design Club. The plant boasts numerous recycling processes – water pumped from the quarry provides an active supply for the borough, for instance, and 7,000 to 10,000 tires per day are used as a heat source – and $16 million was spent for equipment to cut down or eliminate carbon emissions in the production process. The Berks County facility is equipped with a “state of the art” lab to analyze the chemical makeup so the customer is given the best product possible. “One of the main attractions was the horizontal rotary kilns that broke down the raw material to clinker at a temperature of 2,500 degrees,” added DiBucci, from Glenshaw. “The visit was an eye-opening experience that demonstrated the amount of work that is required to produce cement, the most widely used building material in the world.” The tour was followed by a luncheon and discussion. The college’s School of Construction & Design Technologies offers a two-year degree in concrete science technology, unique to the East Coast.
Photo provided

Automated Manufacturing & Machining Corporate Relations Faculty & Staff Industrial, Computing & Engineering Technologies Scholarships Students

Haas Foundation assists Penn College manufacturing talent

Ken Wawrzyniak, sales engineer for Haas Factory Outlet, presents a $15,000 grant check to Pennsylvania College of Technology on behalf of the Gene Haas Foundation. The grant will support scholarships for manufacturing students, as well as student competition teams. Accepting the grant on behalf of Penn College are Richard K. Hendricks, instructor and department head of automated manufacturing and machining, and Elizabeth A. Biddle, director of corporate relations.

A foundation dedicated to growing the next generation of manufacturing talent has bestowed a $15,000 grant to Pennsylvania College of Technology.

The Gene Haas Foundation awarded the grant to support scholarships and student competition teams at Penn College. Students seeking a bachelor’s degree in manufacturing engineering technology, an associate degree in automated manufacturing technology or machine tool technology, or a machinist general certificate are eligible for the scholarships. Recipients will be selected by the college.

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